Watford vs Stoke Predictions, Betting Tips, and Preview

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Watford vs Stoke Betting Tips

Watford seemed to have recovered from the 1-6 mauling at Anfield earlier this month and bounced back to beat a jaded Leicester City 2-1. Walter Mazzarri’s men now prepare to receive Stoke City at Vicarage Road this weekend. Although there is a 5-point gap between 8th placed Watford and Stoke City at 13th, there is not much to differentiate between the two considering their current forms. But Watford will bank on their better home record – 3 out of 5 wins and two defeats at Vicarage Road against much more powerful Arsenal and Chelsea, which is understandable. Comparatively Hull should be much easier opponents on paper.

After their 4-goal losses to Manchester City, Tottenham and Crystal Palace in the August- September period, Mark Hughes’ men have recovered and have hardly been battered since then. A unfortunate 0-1 loss to Bournemouth broke a unbeaten run of seven matches. Ironically, Stoke have the players of the caliber of Xherdan Shakiri, Bojan Krkic, Marko Arnautovic and Wilfried Bony, all of whom play upfront and the result of the match on November 27 could be much different from what it looks on paper, if these men were to fire.

The Watford defence comprising of Younes Kaboul, Sebastian Prodl, Miguel Britos and Daryl Janmaat haven’t been among the best by any stretch of imagination. For a team in the top half of the table and positioned 8th, the Hornets have let in an astonishing 20 goals. Even if one were to factor in the defeat to Liverpool by a lesser margin than the 1-6 they suffered, the figure is still bad. Stoke City have conceded 19 and a relegation candidate like Middlesbrough have let in much less (13). So have bottom half teams like Southampton and Burnley.

Watford will try to add a fifth consecutive unbeaten match at Vicarage Road in a run that began with a memorable 3-1 win over Manchester United in September. But the Potters are a side on the ascendance. Stokes’ gradual improvement since October have seen them creep out of deep relegation territory to the more respectable 13th place they are in, presently. They have the latent firepower to beat the Hornets in their fortress, come Sunday, November the 27th.